80 Years Ago: Early Vought “Corsair Mk I” fighters, of the British Royal Navy’s Fleet Air Arm fly in formation, during training for their pilots in the United States, September 1943. Planes are operating out of Naval Air Station Brunswick, Maine.
Photograph by Lieutenant Charles Fenno Jacobs. National Archives Catalog #: 80-G-473440
Same as the above, 80-G-473438
While everyone remembers the Spitfire, Hurricane, Seafire, and Sea Fury, lots of people forget the FAA picked up a whopping 2,012 Corsairs for use in World War II, actually rushing them into use as carrier birds much faster than the U.S. Navy, as the latter was thought too unsafe for flattop operations. The RN pilots had a tough respect for the “wicked-looking bastard.”
The FAA used both the Vought F4U-1 and the F4U-1A/D, type classified as Corsair Mk I and Corsair Mk II, respectively, as well as the Brewster-made F3A-1D (Corsair Mk III) and the Goodyear-produced FG-1D (Corsair Mk IV), with the Goodyear bird making up almost half of the RN’s inventory.
The Brits proved their worth on carriers, using them both in Europe (they were in on attacks against Tirpitz!) and going on to see much action against the Japanese in 1944-45.
British Royal Navy Vought “Corsair Mk II” (F4U-1A/D) fighters at Naval Air Station (NAS) Squantum, Massachusetts in 1943. Note fleet air arm personnel standing by the planes, and temporary numbers crudely marked on their cowlings. 80-G-K-15126
Corsairs and Barracudas of the British carrier HMS Formidable in July 1944, on their way to attack the Germán battleship Tirpitz
British FAA Corsair MkI of 1830 NAS – Red 7C JT108 (BuNo 18130) with Red 7A in the background, 1943.
WITH THE BRITISH NAVY IN THE EAST. MARCH TO MAY 1945, AT ROYAL NAVAL AIR STATION COLOMBO, ON BOARD THE ESCORT CARRIER HMS EMPRESS, ETC. (A 29080) Looking down from a Naval aircraft on the Chance-Vought Corsair and Fairey Barracuda packed flight deck of the British Aircraft Carrier HMS INDOMITABLE. Copyright: © IWM. Original Source: http://www.iwm.org.uk/collections/item/object/205016199
Rabaul, Corsairs on the British carrier HMS Glory, 6 Oct 1945. AWM image
“No place to land” by Michael Turner. Royal Navy Corsairs return to their carrier HMS Illustrious to find a blazing flight deck following a Kamikaze attack in the South West Pacific, during the BPF deployment against the Japanese 1945. The print is widely available https://www.studio88.co.uk/acatalog/No_Place_to_Land.html
FAA Corsairs of 1834 and 1836 Squadrons aboard HMS Victorious spinning up to sortie in an attack against Sigli, Sumatra, in September 1944.
Perhaps one of the best books on FAA Corsair jocks is The Kamikaze Hunters: Fighting for the Pacific, 1945 by Will Iredale.
I reviewed Kamikaze Hunters back in 2015 and loved it!
Armoured Carriers has a great 20-minute take on the Corsair in British service, including interviews with a number of FAA pilots, below.